The Black Journal Excerpts
by awilcox
Summary: Regulus Black is not dead and he has taken Harry Potter in, feeling it his duty as a Black. Going into hiding to find a way to defeat the Dark Lord once and for all, this story shows pieces of his and Harry's life through journal excerpts.
1. Chapter 1

He'd known from the moment he'd decided to turn against everything he'd been raised to believe in that there would be no going back. He couldn't be what he had been, couldn't stomach the thought of the death that the Dark Lord encouraged, and wished he'd had the strength to be like his brother and turned away from it all before it had gotten this far. Sirius would have welcomed him with open arms he knew, until he decided to become the perfect son. He couldn't change the past, he knew there was nothing to do but go forward. So he began to plan. He could never hope to take on the Dark Lord directly, but the Wizard had trusted him with something, knowledge of what he would do. The Dark Lord forgot that House Elves were only loyal to their families. So Regulus began to plan. If he couldn't fight the Dark Lord directly, he would use what he knew and take the Slytherin approach. First would be planning his own death. There could be no mistakes here, he didn't want anyone to try to find him, it had to be believable, and incontrovertible.

Stealing a Muggle body from the morgue, he worked a small bit of blood magic, changing the inner body chemistry just enough so that if anyone checked, they would believe the body was a Black. Next, he transfigured the body, adjusting its bone structure to match to his own. Finally, he placed a stasis charm on it so it would be ready when he needed it. The body prepared, he headed for Gringotts, removing enough money for him to live on for the ext twenty years if he watched what he spent, including enough funds to purchase a large Muggle house with a plot of land, and changed it all to Muggle funds. While he didn't have the paperwork necessary to open an account in a Muggle bank, a simple _Confoundus_ charm took care of this problem. Next, he sought out an agent to assist him in purchasing a home. He ended up with some farmland in Ireland, along with the six horses that remained. He didn't mind, he'd paid far less than what he had budgeted for. Setting up the wards to make the land Unplottable, as well as some of the nastier intruder wards of the Black family, and finally the wards hiding him from owls, took him the better part of a week.

This done, he summoned Kreacher to assist him in retrieving the item the Dark Lord had his Elf assist him in hiding. It took him three days to recover from the potion with Kreacher's constant care, and even after he felt fragile for weeks to come. While he waited out the illness, he had Kreacher begin moving certain books from the Black library and pick up the large order from the bookstore in the Alley. Once minimally recovered, and making sure to erase all signs of magic on the body, he set it on fire, making certain that it left arm was unrecognizable before having the fire consume the body from the inside out. They would know it was a Black, but further tests would be corrupted. It would be assumed that the body was him. Finally, he port-keyed the body to Diagon Alley; he figured both sides would take it as a warning. Leaving orders for Kreacher to continue bringing him the Daily Prophet so he could track the war, he retreated to his new home to begin research on the locket he had retrieved.

The Prophet only made a small mention of his alleged death, stating that authorities could not be certain. His mark did not burn with summons, leading him to believe that there were other matters the Dark Lord was attending to. He didn't doubt that eventually the Wizard would want to make certain of his death, but for the moment, he was somewhat safe. He wished he hadn't been right about the other matters the Dark Lord was distracted by.

Excerpts from the journal of Regulus Black:

November 1, 1981

Today the Prophet has reported the death of the Dark Lord, giving him the ridiculous moniker of 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named'. It disappoints me that they could be so naïve. The Dark Lord has spent his life searching for immortality, and for them to believe that a mere babe in arms could save them… I don't doubt that physically he was banished, but if my research is correct, if the locket contains a soul fragment, the Dark Lord has been reduced to a shade. If that is the case, he will return, and he will take out all of his anger on the boy. While the world celebrates his defeat, his followers, the smart ones, are insinuating themselves back into their mundane lives, adopting a wait and see approach, the better to stab us all in the back.

Stealing a Muggle body from the morgue, he worked a small bit of blood magic, changing the insides to match him so if anyone checked, they would believe the body was a Black. Next, he transfigured the body matching the appearance to his own. Finally, he placed a stasis charm on it so it would be ready when he needed it. The body prepared, he headed for Gringotts, removing enough money for him to live on for the ext twenty years if he watched what he spent, including enough funds to purchase a large Muggle house with a plot of land, changing it all to Muggle funds. While he didn't have the paperwork necessary to open an account in a Muggle bank, a simple _Confoundus_ charm took care of this problem. Next, he sought out an agent to assist him in purchasing a home. He ended up with some farmland in Ireland, along with the six horses that remained. He didn't mind, he'd paid far less than what he had budgeted for. Setting up the wards to make the land Unplottable, as well as some of the nastier intruder wards of the Black family, and finally the wards hiding him from owls, took him the better part of a week.

This done he summoned Kreacher to assist him in retrieving the item the Dark Lord had his Elf assist him in hiding. It took him three days to recover from the potion with Kreacher's constant care, and even after he felt fragile for weeks to come. While he waited out the illness, he had Kreacher begin moving certain books from the Black library and pick up the large order from the bookstore in the Alley. Once minimally recovered, and making sure to erase all signs of magic on the body, he set it on fire, making certain that it left arm was unrecognizable before having the fire consume the body from the inside out. They would know it was a Black, and make, but further tests would be corrupted. It would be assumed that the body was him. Finally, he port-keyed the body to Diagon Alley, he figured both sides would take it as a warning. Leaving orders for Kreacher to continue bringing him the Daily Prophet so he could track the war, he retreated to his new home to begin research on the locket they had retrieved.

The Prophet only made a small mention of his alleged death, stating that authorities could not be certain. His mark did not burn with summons, leading him to believe that there were other matters the Dark Lord was attending to. He didn't doubt that eventually the Wizard would want to make certain of his death, but for the moment, he was somewhat safe. He wished he hadn't been right about the other matters the Dark Lord was distracted by.

Excerpts from the journal of Regulus Black:

November 1, 1981

Today the Prophet has reported the Death of the Dark Lord, giving him the ridiculous moniker of 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named'. It disappoints me that they could be so naïve. The Dark Lord has spent his life searching for immortality, and for them to believe that a mere babe in arms could save them… I don't doubt that physically he was banished, but if my research is correct, if the locket contains a soul fragment, the Dark Lord has been reduced to a shade. If that is the case, he will return, and he will take out all of his anger on the boy. While the world celebrates his defeat, his followers, the smart ones, are insinuating themselves back into their mundane lives, adopting a wait and see approach, the better to stab us all in the back.


	2. Chapter 2

November 2, 1981

Sirius is in Azkaban. I have sat here staring at the words for what seems like hours… even now I can't seem to wrap my mind around it. They say he betrayed the Potter's, what a laugh. He loved them more than his own family, more than _me_, as much as that hurts to admit. Sirius is in Azkaban.

November 3, 1981

Harry Potter has been removed from our world, supposedly for his own safety, by Albus Dumbledore. It's difficult to argue with the logic of it, except for the fact that the only person I can think of that has a legal claim to the boy is Lily's sister – the same sister that I recall Sirius saying hates both Lily and Magic. Who would put a child in that kind of environment? Perhaps I am wrong, but even so, I think I will do some investigating into the matter. The Potter boy is related to the Black's, if a little distantly, and I want to make certain he is being properly taken care of… for Sirius, and for what little honor the Black name has left.

November 4, 1981

I still have had no luck in either the matter of the Potter boy, nor in the matter of the Horcruxes. While I am unable to check what remains of the Dark Lord, it is my belief that he has lost much of his strength in becoming incorporeal and will unlikely be able to gather enough strength to become corporeal in the years to come. I have time yet for my search. As to the Potter boy, as I become more acclimated to the ways of Muggles, I can almost feel myself closing in on him. I have remembered Lily's sister's name, Petunia, and hopefully will have some luck searching for Petunia Evans.

December 21, 1981

I have found the boy.

December 31, 1981

The boy was in terrible condition, and still is if I am completely honest with myself. What those Muggles did to him is despicable. The level of neglect – and they have only had him for months! What would he have been like if it were years before I found him? Would he even have still been alive? The list of things wrong with him; malnutrition, a diaper rash that looked like the skin had been stripped off his bottom, bruises… I nearly cried when I got him home and ran the diagnostics charms on him. I would have liked to have taken him to St. Mungos, but I couldn't take the chance that Dumbledore would get his hands on Harry again. Thankfully I am more than sufficient at potions; otherwise I would have had no choice. As it was, I still sleep with the boy in my room so I can make sure the fever has truly gone away. Now I worry because he has yet to cry, or call for his parents, he simply whimpers. It is pitiful. He still flinches when I make any sudden moves; I think he expects me to hit him for even that small movement. I think my other hunt will have to be put on hold indefinitely. No Potter, no _Black _should be afraid of the world around them, we are a proud family, if nothing else.

January 23, 1982

He spoke! He was calling out for his mother, and it broke my heart to have to deny him – how do you tell a two year old that their mother was killed? Even so, he spoke, and I hold out hope that he will start to cry, or indicate his needs in some way and not just continue to give me that incredibly sad look. It's not the normal baby babble, but I'll take what I can get. He is cute though, he follows me everywhere. I have to be sure he is in bed soundly asleep before I go into my Potions lab. Outside of the house he clings, not wanting to be put down for even a moment when we have to go out. At least there is some trust there.

There Prophet has yet to report on his disappearance; I can only assume that Dumbledore doesn't want to admit that he has lost 'The boy who lived'. I hope he never finds us; I would kill to keep Harry away from those people.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: as I have yet to do this, I feel that I should mention that I in no way own Harry Potter, nor the characters within this series. While I would like to claim that I am making money off of my humble writings, alas I have not yet gotten that far. Woe is me.

On a side note, for anyone following this story, yes most of this is going to be journal entries, though I may feel the need to flesh out the story a bit in places by adding "real time" bits of interaction between Regulus, Harry, and other characters. The point of view will switch between Regulus and Harry at times.

Why Regulus – because, like a lot of Rowling's side characters, he's not fleshed out during the storyline, and a lot can be done with him. I've also noticed that a lot (most) of the stories he's involved in are tragedies, and I think it's a shame he didn't get to live.

Finally, this is an AU. The original plotline will be followed only in a general way, such as the major happenings during Harry's time at Hogwarts. Criticism and praise are accepted, people who insult me will be mocked.

Now, onto Chapter 3!

**July 31, 1986**

It's Harry's sixth birthday today and, as is now tradition, rather than have a party, Harry and I went out for Harry's Day. Yes, it does deserve capital letters, Harry told me so. What was different about this time was instead of going to Muggle London, Harry decided he wanted to go to Diagon Alley. I've yet to be able to deny him, so I told him that he would have to be in disguise, and since charms and glamour can be cancelled, it would have to be a muggle disguise. I'd hoped this would put him off, but he only got more excited. So we went to a hairstylist to get Harry a perm. Apparently this is not unusual for young muggles, though the stylist did comment on Harry's age. That done, they headed to an esthetician for assistance in covering Harry's scar. She mention something about cosmetic surgery, but the description was enough to make me shudder. Taught to cover his scar, we then made our way to an Optometrist for contact lenses. The things muggles can come up with is truly amazing. While we were waiting, we even read about something called colored lenses. When we asked, it was explained that they can both correct the vision as well as change eye color. I ordered several pairs after the explanation on how to care for them; I wanted to see if there is a way to charm the things to make them easier to care for, perhaps to enable Harry to leave them on. We picked up the lenses today before heading into the Alley. I must say, with hair longer than James ever kept it, the perm and the gray lenses, Harry looks all Black. Even the more delicate bone structure of Lily served to make him resemble me more than James. If anyone comments on the differences, they are easy enough to explain away as being from his mother. I had thought about changing both of us, but Harry argued that I was never charged for any crimes. Smart little bugger. It did serve to remind me that I should look a little more closely at the Mark. I have no desire to be bound to the Dark Lord when he returns.

So, we went to Diagon Alley, for which Harry was renamed Orion. Harry actually likes the name, and told me that if I want to keep him hidden I should think about calling him that all the time. Cheeky. Now Harry James Potter is Orion Sirius Black, in honor of my brother. I told Harry that I would see about having a birth certificate created for him tomorrow. It's only fair; I had a muggle birth certificate created for myself, though I didn't have to change my name for the process… I just happen to not exist in the muggle legal system. We also agreed that his new birth date is June 26, 1980. If anyone is so crass as to ask, the reason I disappear was to protect Orion and his mother, who sadly died in childbirth.

As I read back on this, I realize that I am a little too flustered to continue writing this evening; I have no desire to ramble on in word form, so I shall leave the rest for tomorrow.

**August 1, 1986**

We met Albus Dumbledore at the Alley. I still shiver when I think about it. What if we hadn't taken all of these precautions? Some good did come of it, I suppose. I was assured that Orion's name would be added to the books so he will receive his Hogwarts letter. I hadn't actually thought that far ahead for all of my planning. I made the excuse that I had fled to the colonies with my pregnant wife, and only recently returned. Albus told me that I should give the Ministry notice of my good health so I can claim the Black estate. Another year and I would have been declared legally dead, and without a direct heir, Narcissa would likely have made her claim, that or the Black fortune would have been confiscated by the Ministry because the Black heir is in Azkaban.

Albus Dumbledore. I am glad that I am a more than fair Occulmens. I sent Orion to the Quidditch shop as soon as he got a hold of me, but I think I will begin lessons with the boy on the art. I would hate to have my house of cards come crashing down around me simply because his mind was unprotected. Ah well, it is over with now, and the man seemed sympathetic to my supposed loss. Now that I am officially among the living or in the process of it anyway, I suppose I had better take down the owl wards. Gringotts will no doubt want to begin correspondence again.

**August 6, 1986**

I should never have gotten that little bugger a broom. Little scamp caught me while I was still off guard from my discussion with Dumbledore. James and Sirius would have been proud, even at six it's easy to see he's a natural. That doesn't excuse him for nearly giving me a heart attack. I will have gray hair before I'm thirty, I swear. If I'm at all like my father, at least it will make me look distinguished. Maybe next year I'll get him something more powerful.

**August 7, 1986**

I have begun looking into the Mark. It looks like a variation on the protean charm. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean I'll be able to remove it. I think the bastard may have used Parsel magic.

**October 14, 1986**

Orion is a Parselmouth. The Potter's are only obscurely related to Slytherin, if at all, and that was never one of their gifts. I think there may be more to his scar than I want to believe.

**December 18, 1986**

Harry's scar contains a Horcrux.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I in no way own Harry Potter, nor the characters within this series. While I would like to claim that I am making money off of my humble writings, alas I have not yet gotten that far. Woe is me.

**February 8, 1987**

After much research and what seems like endless testing, I believe I have found a method that will enable me to remove Orion's soul fragment and place it in another object. I found a reference to the method in the Black vault. I think this is the first time that I have ever been thankful to my family's Dark background. Orion is aware of what I have been doing, and while he has some fear, he understands what must be done. I will not have that evil parasite stay attached to my son any longer than necessary. I only wish that I had found it much sooner. Luckily, it is weaker than the piece in the locket, though I suspect if Harry had been forced to remain with his muggle relatives, the situation would have been much more dire, and the fragment far more difficult to remove.

On a happier note, the boy's Occulmancy has continued to progress at a steady pace which assists in keeping the foreign elements contained.

**March 2, 1987**

I was able to successfully remove the soul fragment from Orion with no harmful side effects noted aside from the scar itself splitting open. Luckily, anticipating this I had scar cream on hand to close and reduce scaring. Hopefully if we can't completely remove the scar, it will at least become unnoticeable. I know that Orion despises the costume make-up used to hide it when we go to the Alley. After some rest for both of us, on a whim I conjured a snake. It seems that Orion will continue to be a Parselmouth. He knows that he will need to hide the ability, but honestly, I'd rather he talk to snakes than have a piece of the Dark Lord's soul attached to him. I also did some minimal diagnostics testing. Orion's core seems changed somehow. Like a shadow has been removed. It also seems to have increased significantly. Could the soul fragment have been suppressing Orion's magic? I will continue to monitor him to be certain there was no lasting effects.

Does it make me a bad person that I was relieved when I discovered Orion was still a Parselmouth? I didn't mean to, but my mind went immediately to the research possibilities. If, as I believe, the Dark Lord used parsel magic to create the Mark, when he is older, could Orion use the same to remove it? It is something to think on.

**April 19, 1987**

Despite the fact that Orion has been going to muggle school for 2 years, it seems like I have only now had any time to continue with my research on the Horcruxes. I Know the Dark Lord made more than one, as evidenced by the two in my possession, but it is my belief that he has as many soul pieces as seven, including the shade himself. I have found a spell of like calling to like and modified it to mark the places they appear on a map. As Orion is already home from school for the day, I shall wait for the morrow to test the spell. I need to get a map of Europe anyway.

**April 20, 1987**

I did the spell. I counted seven, possibly eight fragments. One more than I had estimated, though I don't believe the Dark Lord counts himself as a fragment. Two are here with me, one I have narrowed down to a place called Little Hangleton, the fourth in what seems to be Gringotts, though with the wards around Diagon Alley it is impossible to say, the fifth is in the area of Hogwarts I believe, a sixth is in what I believe is Malfoy Manor, despite the Unplottable wards they have in place, and the seventh, and maybe an eighth is in Romania. If this is the case, one part is the shade itself, and he is keeping the other with him. I couldn't pinpoint an exact location, the spell has burned nearly the whole section of Romania. If the fourth is in Gringotts, I can guess who's vault contains it. I wonder what the Goblins will say when I begin the paperwork to take over the Lestrange vault. It will be nothing less than a hassle, I'm certain.

I will have to wait to retrieve the piece in Muggle area, I don't want to leave Orion alone, and it's too dangerous to take him with me. Lucius and Hogwarts will have to wait. I am patient, I have time, the Mark has yet to begin burning.

**September 3, 1987**

Harry Apparated today! I expected accidental magic, but this, this is amazing. It was a powerful bit of magic for someone so young. The reason he found it necessary is unfortunate. Children bullying; muggles and wizards are no different in that regard. I spoke with Orion's Headmaster to lodge the complaint, but there was no damage and no evidence. I could only tell Orion to be careful and to let his teachers know if someone is picking on him. I swear though, if they even think about coming near him while I'm around, I will make Sirius and James at their worst seem like pussycats!

I think I should begin some control exercises with Orion though, as powerful as he is, I don't want him to seriously injure someone because they scared him. They'll be added to his Occulmancy practice every night before he goes to bed. Merlin help me if he uses what I teach him to play pranks on me! I can almost hear Sirius telling him to give me hell…


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I own nothing, I am making no profit.

Note: I've gone back and corrected some mistakes. I doubt I've caught them all, but the spell checker only does so much :(

"Orion!" Regulus called, "Hurry it up, I want to get there before the noon rush!"

He smiled and looked up from his tea at the sound of stampeding footsteps coming down the stairs. How one boy could make so much noise was beyond him. He remembered chasing after his brother and cousins as a boy, and was certain they had never made that much noise. The smile never faded, but his brow rose as he caught sight of Orion, one of his leather-bound journals in his son's hand.

"Is that what you've been doing up there?" he asked.

Orion gave him a cheeky grin, "It's not like you've hidden them, and you're awfully lucky you've already told me all of this, or I would have some serious doubts about our relationship."

"Brat," he replied fondly, "If you already know it all, then why are you reading my private journals?"

He watched as the boy slid into the chair across from him at the dining room table and grabbed a piece of fruit. He took another sip of his own tea as Orion began to eat the breakfast he had set out for him in order to save on time.

Between swallows, he was answered: "This way I get to see everything from your perspective. I know you've told me everything, but with this," Orion shrugged taking another quick bite of his porridge.

Regulus nodded thoughtfully, "Alright, you can read them. Put it in your room before we go though, and you can finish it later," he pinned the boy with a stern look, "Just remember; it's not going with you to Hogwarts."

"Alright, alright," two more quick bites and Orion was running out of the kitchen and back up the stairs.

Regulus shook his head and flicked his wand to send their dishes into the sink. He wished Sirius were here for this. He sighed and stood to wait at the bottom of the stairs; if he was going to wish for something, might as well wish that the Dark Lord had never been born, and that Harry's parents had never died, or even a way to simply free Sirius. The Ministry still refused to give the man a trial, or even let Regulus visit. No proof of innocence, he snorted, there was no proof of his guilt either, just circumstantial evidence. He couldn't even find Lupin to see if the last of Sirius's friends could shine some light on what had happened ten years ago.

Orion's voice jerked him abruptly for his morose musings: "I am ready to get my wand," the boy told him with mock gravity.

Regulus ruffled his hair, "Hold tight then!"

"Hey Reggie, I think I want to start a journal," Orion turned surprisingly serious eyes away from the shelf of blank paged booked, "I'm starting Hogwarts-"

"Really?"Regulus mocked, "Who knew"

Which earned him a dirty look, "- and I think it would be a good idea to write in it before I do my nightly meditation. You know, to get everything off my chest."

Regulus smiled gently at that, "It's a good idea. Sometimes we have so many thoughts running through our heads that it's hard to keep everything straight. I got my first journal when Sirius and I were boys. My father gave them to us. He told us that we should have a place that we can express our hopes and dreams and confess our wrongs and fears without any reprisal. He also taught us some wicked protections so no one could read our business," his smile faded with remembrance, "Sirius kept one too, but I don't know where he hid it or I would give it to you," his thoughtful attention return to the empty books in front of them, "I think I can charm two of these to talk to each other if you want. That way there are no delay's in writing each other.

From the corner of his eye he saw Orion's eyes widen with excitement, and two hands swiftly reached out and chose three journals to purchase. His lips tilted upwards with amusement and his son's eagerness, and he turned back to the rest of the bookstore saying: "Come along now, we need to pick up your actual school books."

Time spent in the bookstore was never a waste, Regulus reflected as they stepped outside of the store and took a moment to shrink their packages. Aside from Orion's school books, they had both picked up a few other texts for some supplementary reading. In Orion's case, one was the latest novel in a series he had been waiting for on the exploits of Harry Potter. Regulus didn't know why Orion read them; all the boy would tell him was that they were hilarious. He didn't think the author meant for his readers to find the books funny, but he also doubted that the author expected Harry Potter himself to read the books. On the other hand, considering the other books Orion had picked out, and with the training Regulus had been giving him, the boy was going to be well ahead of his peers in both theory and practice, so he could afford to indulge in some harmless reading.

"What do you think? Wand next?" Regulus asked, keeping a hand on his son's shoulder and casually guiding him through the crowds in the Alley, "Then maybe some ice cream before we get your robes and potions supplies?"

"Actually dad, it looks like Madame Malkin's shop is pretty much empty at the moment, let's get my fittings out of the way first," Orion said looking across the street at the shop in question.

Regulus shrugged, "It's your day, lead on," he replied agreeably.

The robe fitting took hardly any time at all, as Orion said it seemed the shop was experiencing a lull while they were there. Not the Regulus was complaining. It seemed like as soon as Orion hoped off the stool the shop suddenly filled with customers.

Madame Malkin was looking hassled when she told them: "The robes will be ready in about two hours."

They didn't bother with a polite reply when she abruptly spun away from them at the sound of a shrill cry. Regulus exchanged a look with his son and jerked his head to the door. Orion looked relieved, and made no move to dislodge his hand when Regulus steered him from the shop.

"Thank Merlin that's over," Orion stated sincerely, "I could use that ice cream now!"

Regulus gave him a mock shove, but didn't protest when his son led him over to the little shop. Neither one was in the mood for one of the shop's renown concoctions, both settling on a scoop of mint chip ice scream, Regulus refusing to allow more for the time being because he didn't want to ruin their lunch.

They didn't speak while they ate, each lost in his own thoughts. Regulus was thinking back to his own first year, remembering how excited Sirius had been to show him everything. He wished things had been different, that he hadn't allowed House rivalries to drive that first wedge between them. That was where their estrangement had started, he knew. He couldn't help but wonder if he could have saved Sirius if only he had gone to any other House.

"Dad? Your ice cream is melting," Orion's voice broke through his thoughts.

Regulus looked down at the melted unappetizing mess and shrugged, "Oh well. Are you finished?" he asked, looking over to Orion's nearly clean bowl. He barked a short laugh when in response his son shoved the last spoonful in his mouth and grinned, "Ready to get you wand then?"

Ollivander's was as dark and musty as he remembered, especially after being in the dazzling sun moments before. He rather thought Ollivander kept it that way deliberately to better startle his customers. As if on cue the old man appeared before them, and beside him Orion jumped with surprise.

"Regulus Black. I'd heard you were back among the living, though there are few firsthand accounts from any who have actually seen you," he murmured peering through silvery eyes at the taller man before shaking off the bemusement stating: "Mahogany with dragon heartstring, good for defensive work and warding. This must be your son, Orion."

"How do you do?" Orion said, pulling out his manners.

Regulus didn't doubt he would have offered to shake, but Ollivander abruptly turned away to look at his shelves, snapping his fingers for the tape measurers to take the boys numbers and murmuring to himself: "Difficult, mother foreign I'm told, so can't know the wand on that side. I think I'll try the dragon cores first."

Regulus quietly took a seat, sending Orion a reassuring look as Ollivander glanced over the measures being dictated by the tape. The old man was an odd one to be sure; more comfortable with his wands than with people, but he was the best at his craft. Then the process began. Regulus lost count of the number of wands Orion tried, and with each failure, the old man became more flustered. Wood of all types: Mahogany, Maple, Yew, Holly, Willow, Ash, Dogwood, Oak, the list went on. Cores of any magical creature imaginable: Dragon, Unicorn, Pixie, Mermaid, Thestral, Sphinx, Faun, Griffin, Hippogriff, Hydra, Kelpie, Lamia, Hydra, Abraxan, Salamander, Selkie, Siren, and Undine. It was amazing the list of cores available, and Regulus was certain he hadn't heard of all of them. They were there two hours before Ollivander quietly admitted that he may have to custom make a wand. Regulus was surprised, wand makers rarely custom made wands these days, they tended to have everything readily available.

Regulus was just about to accept when the old man suddenly lit up: "I have one more wand. It's unique in that only rarely will a wand maker have Phoenix feathers on hand. The birds are rare, and powerful. They make powerful wands. In fact, I have only ever made two Phoenix cored wands."

This was all called over the man's shoulder as he made his way into the back room. At Orion's uncertain look, Regulus shrugged and smiled reassuringly. When Ollivander reappeared, he was holding a dust covered box which he reverently opened and held out to Orion. Another uncertain glance to Regulus and Orion reached out to take it. They all heard the triumphant singing of the wand as Orion grasped it firmly, red and silver sparks shooting from its tip.

There was a moment of silence as Orion basked in the feeling of a perfectly matched wand before Ollivander cleared his throat: "Holly wood with a Phoenix feather core. Powerful, it will serve you well in anything you choose," he frowned a moment in thought before abruptly shaking his head to look closely at Orion, "As I said, I have only ever made two Phoenix cored wands, the feathers are in fact from the same phoenix. The first went to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," he switched his stare to the wand itself, "That one I thought would go to the boy who defeated him, Harry Potter."


End file.
